U Cut Christmas Tree | What to Expect

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When I was little, my family owned a winery in Oregon. It was a magical way to grow up. Over 200 acres of woods, creek, and vineyards. There was an old barn, sheep, cows, rabbits, dogs, cats. Everything a 5 year old could possibly ever want. And, when it was Christmas time, you simply went in the yard, chose a tree, and chopped it down.

Since then, getting a tree hasn’t really been the same. It isn’t quite as magical driving down to the local hardware store and grabbing a tree off the lot.

So, this year I decided I wanted some of that hygge magic back. This year, I wanted a u cut Christmas tree. Imagine it, the chilly Pacific Northwest air, a big cozy coat, walking hand in hand with your someone special searching for the perfect tree.

I wasn’t really sure what to expect from a u cut Christmas tree farm. After some research we decided on Big Lake Trees. While I live in a rural area, we don’t have land ourselves, so we picked a farm close by that had positive reviews. But, beyond that I wasn’t sure what to expect. Some u cut Christmas tree farms will allow power tools. Ours did not. They had hand saws available for use there. This is apparently common, but something you’ll want to make sure you check on before headed out.

When we arrived, there was a small hut that housed some free hot cocoa and cider, the hand saws for your use, and a helpful employee who could tell us what tree types were where. At our tree farm, there were several types of trees. And, we weren’t particular on one specific kind. If you are, you should check to see what kind of trees they have before making the drive. It would be tragic if you had your heart set on a noble fir, just to get there and find out they don’t grow any.

So, once we had gotten the lay of the land, we were off! I had originally thought I wanted a noble fir. I love the dramatic branches and space between them to highlight the ornaments. The handsome hunk though was all about a traditional fluffy tree. The fluffier the better. The noble firs take much longer to grow, so the noble firs available were all on the shorter side. We have high ceilings, last year our 6 ft tree looked a little on the shrimpy side in our living room. So, we decided to go for scale this year. And, we finally found an 9-10ish ft Douglas fir that was large enough for our space. It was fluffy for Tom, but had some space for ornaments too.

We took turns sawing away at the tree, until it came crashing down. They will net the tree for a price. We loaded it up in the truck, and paid on the way out. $34.

$34! We had the same type of tree last year, from a lot, that was much smaller, and double the price. Double! Without any of the fun! This was an adventure! A hygge adventure! It was a whole day of hot cocoa, tromping around the woods, and finding the perfect tree together.

This is a tradition we plan to keep going.